The Casual Gaming Trend In World Of Warcraft And What It Means For The Future
If you've been playing World of Warcraft at all consistently over the last two years, you've seen the way the game has been moving toward more casual play. By this, I mean that there are fun things to do at all levels, without the need to spend many hours or days to achieve anything. The idea behind this drift seems to be to attract and retain more casual players, people who can't or won't put in the amount of time and energy a hard-core player will. Considering how many people now play the game, this strategy has clearly worked to get people involved. But some people are wondering if having lots of casual players is good for the game itself, as well as for the hard-core players. Here's a breakdown of the situation.
The Positive Side of the Casual Trend
Probably the best thing about the more casual style of play is that it causes Blizzard to make sure to add lots of fun things to the game.. Changes like Achievements, lower level requirements for mounts, less XP to get to the higher level content, along with the large number of events held throughout the year all add a lot of depth and detail to the World of Warcraft universe. For hardcore players who spend large blocks of time repeatedly playing through the same area over and over trying to get a new epic shield, pair of spaulder, it keeps you from getting stuck in a rut and adds some depth to your gaming days.
The Negative Side of Casual Style Play
The trend toward casual gaming has drawn away from resources Blizzard previously poured into raiding content and things for more devoted players. Surprisingly, the highest level raid for Level 80 players is significantly easier than the top raids for Level 70. Raid sizes are now 10 and 25 men as well. The top-end Players who reached Level 80 days after the expansion came out are left with PvP or Achievement grinding if they want something to do as they wait for the higher end raids that will eventually come to the game.
What Casual Play Means for World of Warcraft
In the end, casual gamers coming to WoW is good for everyone. It brings in new revenue and as long as Blizzard maintains quality levels and puts the necessary resources they should into the game, they will be able to maintain a steady flow of new content for all level of players. It might seem like the faithful are getting shortchanged, but it is the price we have to pay to give the company the resources to develop new content in the future that might not otherwise get the go ahead.
Are you interested in staying up with the trends in World of Warcraft, whether toward casual gaming or anything else? If so, you should find out more about the Warcraft Formula, a monthly guide to all things WoW. This Warcraft Formula review gives you all the details.
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